Support of elected representatives only basis for ECI to decide on name: Praful Patel

A senior leader from the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) stated that the key appointments prior to June 30 were not as per the Nationalist Congress Party’s constitution and, hence, the only basis on which the Election Commission can decide about which faction represents the party is through electoral majority.

The NCP experienced a split on July 2 when Ajit Pawar and eight MLAs joined the Eknath Shinde government. Since that split, both the Ajit Pawar faction and the group led by the party's founder, Sharad Pawar, have asserted that they represent the party.

Both sides have appointed functionaries while calling appointments made by the other group as illegal. They have also filed petitions seeking disqualification of elected representatives from the other side. We have 43 MLAs in Maharashtra supporting us as well as six out of nine MLCs, Praful Patel, working president of NCP as per the Ajit Pawar group, told reporters.

While we believe in the principle of majority, it should be noted that the party can function only within the parameters of its own constitution. We never had our internal elections as per the constitution of the party so all the appointments prior to June 30 are unconstitutional, he claimed.

Therefore,the only test based on which the Election Commission (of India) can decide (to whom the party, name, symbol belongs) is by number of elected representatives, he said in the presence of Lok Sabha MP Sunil Tatkare, who has been appointed state unit president by the Ajit Pawar faction.

Following the split within the NCP, the Ajit Pawar group has staked a claim to the party's name and symbol by asserting that on June 30, Ajit Pawar was appointed as the party chief, replacing Sharad Pawar. The Election Commission of India (ECI) is scheduled to consider the arguments presented by both factions on October 6.

The presidents, including Jayant Patil, have been nominated and not elected. Organisational appointments need to be through election. We have no such records of internal elections. Since we did not have elections, the selection of delegates (to party conference) is also questionable, Patel said.